5 bedroom house

A truly stunning, Grade II listed, Georgian residence set in approximately 3.8 acres set on a well elevated position alongside the River Derwent - including fishing rights - and with a myriad of period features including an impressive entrance hall, three Regency-style reception rooms, five-to-six bedrooms, three bathrooms, a separate double garage and a stone-chipped circular driveway with an exquisite central fountain.

Originally a mansion house, built in 1826 by the successful paper manufacturer John Annandale, on the site of Shotley Grove Paper Mills, Shotley Grove House - which is referenced in Pevsner's Buildings of England - was one large detached property but was later divided into two - the larger residence, which retained the majority of the land, becoming Grove House. Bought in 2019 by the current owners, the house and grounds have undergone considerable and sympathetic refurbishment and improvement to provide an incredible family dwelling.

Entering the house from the formal entrance to the front elevation, the hallway provides access to the tastefully appointed and very generously proportioned drawing room on one side, and the dining room on the other - both with beautiful curved bays on opposite sides. The entrance hall opens out into the central hall with a cloaks area to the side leading through to the W.C., a study (or home office) and the spacious kitchen/breakfast room, which includes a working Aga. The rear and everyday entrance is beyond the kitchen, providing access to the snug/sitting room with wood burning stove, and a useful boiler room (housing the gas central heating boiler) through to a laundry area and further prep room /utility room. The beautiful staircase leads up from the hallway to a split landing, with one side giving access to a guest bedroom and a shower room and a store/box room and the other to another large bedroom, a bathroom with free-standing bath and a further separate adjacent shower room, with a walk-through shower. Then further central stairs up to the master suite, which comprises a large sumptuous bedroom that overlooks the formal front garden and an adjoining dressing room that opens into an additional living room/further double bedroom (with its own access from the landing). Continuing up from the main first floor landing there is another large bedroom with skylight windows, and an additional loft room, that could also easily be used as a sizeable sixth bedroom.

Externally there is a gate to the entrance and the sweeping stone-chipped driveway with an excellent turning circle and aforementioned central fountain. The driveway provides access to the double garage and a nearby greenhouse. The extensive lawned garden leads down to and along the bank of the River Derwent . The property boasts a wonderful and level family garden area to the front, with two patios and a further walled fruit & vegetable garden beyond.

Situated in an enviable semi-rural location along Shotley Grove Road, Grove House provides some fantastic views of the surrounding fields, trees and countryside in the Derwent Valley, and while it offers all the advantages of a rare rural retreat it is conveniently located half a mile from Shotley Bridge village, with other amenities just up Durham Road in Blackhill and with Consett town centre two miles away, where there are further facilities. Situated close to the Northumberland border, which is just across the river, Hexham is under 19 miles away - along the A68/A69 - while the regional centres of Durham and Newcastle are both within 15 miles, and Newcastle Airport just over 17 miles away. There are many countryside walks and cycle routes in the area, along the river and in the nearby North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.